In Sderot, a First Day of School

Stand for Israel  |  March 5, 2024

After the Hamas attack on October 7, Israelis evacuated from southern Israel. But now they are returning to their homes, meaning school is starting back up with more than 50% of students returning to school, reports The Times of Israel:

“We left a few days after October 7,” explained one young student in a soft voice, describing how her family had stayed in several different hotels in Israel’s southernmost city of Eilat in the ensuing months, while occasionally visiting their home.

“The last time was a month ago, but there were still rockets,” she explained…

Mayor Davidi, speaking outside the school, said he still felt “a lot of rage” at what evacuated Sderot residents had gone through and noted a “deep gap” in learning between evacuated students and those in other parts of the country.

Still, the number of students returning to school and kindergarten in the city “was a surprise,” he noted. “We thought it would be lower.”

The March 3 reopening of some 100 schools in the city saw “around 55-60 percent of the children” back in class, an Education Ministry official told The Times of Israel, and came after many of the educational facilities were repainted and tidied up after being used by IDF soldiers as impromptu bases in recent months.